The deceased US VP Dick Cheney, who died at the age of 84, was seen as arguably the most significant occupants of that position in US history. Whereas many second-in-commands were limited to marginal or figurehead roles, Cheney wielded enormous sway during the presidency of George W Bush, to the point that he was frequently described as the "true president".
Bush disliked this portrayal and said the connection was more nuanced. He noted that Cheney was courteous, consistently calling him in public settings as President, while he referred to him as Dick. Bush disputed even descriptions of their partnership as a collaboration because it indicated that they were peers. In spite of these denials, Cheney viewed the easygoing president accommodating on a whole raft of governmental choices.
The Post-9/11 Era
At the head of a contingent of neo-conservatives that included Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Pentagon second-in-command Paul Wolfowitz, he strongly advocated the armed incursion of Iraq in 2003 in answer to the terrorist strikes on New York and Washington. At the time of the 9/11 assault, Bush had been attending a gathering at a elementary school in Florida. As Bush traveled to a underground facility in Nebraska, Cheney assumed control, commanding the destruction of any unresponsive airplanes nearing the US Capitol.
Cheney claimed the attacks altered his perspective, making him become intent on revenge. Along with other conservative figures, including Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, he lobbied for a takeover of Afghanistan in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. Cheney then strongly advocated for the military action of Iraq, even though there was insufficient indication of Saddam Hussein playing a role.
Disputed Decisions
He expressed no regrets about the military campaign, in which an reckoned 100,000 Iraqis died, or about the waterboarding of detainees captured after 9/11. He told CNN in 2015 that the Iraq invasion effort, which was based on inaccurate information echoed by Cheney, was the right path to take. "It was the correct action to do then. I was convinced back then and I believe it now."
But during that period, there were opposing views at a high level about the mishandling of Iraq. One of the administration's own special envoys to the Middle East, General Anthony Zinni (2001-03), was not retained from the post. "I witnessed, at the very least," he later wrote "obvious failure, carelessness, and irresponsibility: in the worst case, deception, incompetence, and corruption."
Wider Perspective
Cheney was not solely accountable for the Iraq campaign. Even before 9/11, Wolfowitz had called for comparable steps. He had written a memo detailing situations in which national priorities might be compromised (including "obtaining crucial commodities, primarily Persian Gulf oil"). Wolfowitz had asserted that "the US should be positioned to take unilateral action when collective action prove impossible," particularly referencing defense operations against Iraq.
Bush also had assumed the White House somewhat determined on executing what his predecessor had specifically avoided to do in 1991; topple Saddam. Following he had been dismissed by the administration, the finance chief Paul O'Neill recounted how, at the first meeting of the National Security Council in January 2001, Bush had announced his plan of diminishing America's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and proposed military action against Iraq.
Bush held a private grievance against Saddam, convinced he had been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate his predecessor, President George HW Bush, on a journey to Kuwait in 1993. He furthermore disliked that one of the largest establishments in Baghdad had a floor mural with a likeness of his father's face that everyone had to walk over.
Questioning Techniques
Yet it was Cheney who was part of the most vociferous behind striking Iraq, repeatedly quoting information documents that were whether insubstantial or totally deceptive. He backed what the Bush government indirectly described as "intensive questioning", the use of interrogation method and torture.
Addressing a Senate report in 2014 that found that no actionable intelligence had resulted from the interrogation methods, Cheney disregarded the findings as "full of crap". He stated to Fox News: "We instructed [the CIA] to take steps and create procedures to catch the bastards who took the lives of 3,000 of us on 9/11 and make sure it never happened again. That's exactly what they did and they earn a lot of credit."
Public Image
Cheney enjoyed nicknames imposed on him by detractors such as the Star Wars villain and the sinister presence, and by the notion that he was a shadow power directing Bush. In Peter Baker's 2013 publication about the duo, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, Cheney is cited as commenting: "Is it me who is the malevolent mastermind in the corner that nobody ever sees emerge from his domain? This represents a effective way to operate, actually."
Business Interests
Controversy over his business interests pursued him throughout his time as VP. Although he had limited background in commerce but established relationships in defence, notably in Saudi Arabia, he was invited to join Halliburton, one of the world's most substantial energy corporations, in 1995 as chair and top executive.
In 2000 he assumed the role of Bush's VP candidate for the White House. Contentiously, during the Iraq war, Halliburton was given US agreements totaling billions.
It made him rich. His annual income during his tenure at the corporation grew from his $258,394 when he was Pentagon chief to millions. When he resigned in 2000 he had a compensation package valued at in excess of $20m|twenty
